Harrowed Uchiha
by Fflurion
Summary: The first branch of the Uchiha never approved of those from the second branch. As Etsuko Uchiha discovers, the second branch is never tolerated. When she befriends Shisui and Itachi-and create the Golden Trio, the main branch of the clan has objections. Will the trio's friendship be enough to sway the coup d'état or was it destined to fail from the beginning?
1. 【序幕】

Fugaku Uchiha frowned as his son, along with Kagami's child, forwarded into the assembly hall to speak. He attempted to act nonchalant when both boys made themselves comfortable with a girl. They were the only 'children' in the meeting, but Fugaku couldn't risk a backlash from the Elders for banishing his son from the clan affairs.

"Lord Fugaku will now address you all," announced the advisor.

At the back, Itachi and Shisui snickered to each other about Etsuko's interest at the two statues on either side of the stage. They were debating whether the two images were of the legendary Madara or depicting a female counterpart. Despite the lack of scriptures, there was speculation that the mystery 'woman' was able to bring the Uchiha together in Madara's absence.

"I wonder who she is," Etsuko mumbled.

"_She_ is probably a _he_," Shisui snickered

"Girls can lead just as well as boys," Etsuko elbowed Shisui in his side. "I'm surprised Fugaku hasn't taken the statue down, he wouldn't want leadership falling into anyone's hands other than his family."

Itachi folded his arms and glanced between the woman and Madara. His interest had spiked. While female ninja was bountiful in the village, they were somewhat overlooked in the Uchiha. Mainly due to very few women awakening the Sharingan and choosing household duties over that of a nation. As he stared at the female's stone features, he wondered if the woman could've been Madara's lover as they were depicted as equals. Itachi shrugged off the thought when his father mentioned the prospects of a civil war.

"The Uchiha have had enough restrictions placed on them," despite Fugaku addressing the entire clan, his eyes never left the trio. "As it is written on our stone tablet, and from the words of Madara Uchiha himself―the Uchiha deserve what is rightfully theirs."

Shisui muffled Etsuko's protests with his hand. A few of the Elders shifted their eyes to them in warning to quiet down. Shisui blew out a long breath and pressed his finger to Etsuko's lips, shaking his head.

"Tonight is the night of the Uchiha," Fugaku's Third-Stage Sharingan activated. "On this day, Konohagakure will be stained red."

Fugaku's Sharingan narrowed at the children who whispered rebellious thoughts to each other. Even though they were no older than twelve, Fugaku could see the alert attentiveness not only in his son's eyes but in the girl's as well. Fugaku's gut told him that the children would become a trouble, so it was now his job to nudge them onto a darker path. Even if that path was total annihilation.


	2. 【章一】

_Four Years Later_

_Run._

I had to be faster if I were to survive. I gasped for breath as Inabi, Yashiro and Tekka chased me. With every step, Inabi threw explosive kunai at my heels in order to send me off balance. Though, I was swift and somersaulted over the explosions to reach the arch of the compound. I was only a few metres from the gate when Tekka latched onto my collar.

I spun on my heel and began to weave hand signs, "Kaiton: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"

The heat from the fireball alone was enough for him to let go, the width of the flames put enough distance between us for me to roll across the threshold and tumble towards the steps of the main house. Above, Shisui and Itachi bound across the rooftops, throwing assorted kunai and shuriken to divert the other two away from me.

I clutched the scroll close to my chest and jumped into the gutter of the mansion.

"Stop, you're under arrest for desecrating an Uchiha monument!" shouted Yashiro.

Placing the scroll between my teeth, I made the decision to keep running despite the pain in my calves. In one large jump, I made it to the wall at the opposite end of the compound. Though, as my toes landed on the edge, Inabi's kunai landed just above, causing an explosion. I lost my footing and grappled the jagged pieces, squinting as the dust blurred my vision. I splayed my fingers and pricked my shoulders to build the upper body strength to pull myself up. However, my moment of hesitation allowed the three police to catch up to me, their Sharingan on full display.

There were no warrants for arrest, but Fugaku's promise of an Uchiha-run Konahagakure was the main ethos of the clan. In that regard, the military force could detain whoever they pleased. Inabi twirled another kunai around his finger when Shisui landed above me, extending his hand.

In another burst of fire, Itachi used a fireball for us to escape over the wall and into the village again.

"Did you get it?" Shisui asked as he blocked two shurikens with his Tanto.

"Mm," I spat the scroll into my palm and tossed it to him. The gates of the village were nearing closer when I dug my heels into the ground, "Where's Itachi?"

Like always, he wanted to play the martyr. He stood on the distant wall of the compound, defending us. His Sharingan illuminated his deep-set eyes as he shouted down at his father's men. Something inside him had snapped recently and had caused him to swallow his quiet persona in favour of an outspoken and aggressive individual.

Shisui glanced between us and smirked.

"The village is under curfew... .but if they make enough noise and follow us, they'll risk more witnesses," I cracked my knuckles. "Our best bet is the valley."

Shisui nodded and marked my shoulder, calling out to Itachi, "We need to split, dumb-arse!"

Itachi back-flipped over the wall and joined us, holding out his hand for Shisui's mark. Within a matter of seconds, we teleported to a body of water.

As I stared into the calm pool, I couldn't help my shaking fists. Despite being Shisui and Itachi's closest friend, I always seemed to be two steps behind them in stamina and skill. Even if I ran in front, was able to steal a sacred scroll and mimic their jutsu, I was nowhere near as accomplished. I felt inferior in every way, from awakening my Sharingan last by chance, become Chunnin at eight and Jonnin at ten but having no S-Rank missions to my name... .the expectation was too much. Because I was from the second branch, I was considered unworthy, ever since birth.

I was only tolerated because I wore the Uchiha symbol and increased their numbers in the village. I only gained their traits by luck, but that wasn't enough to alleviate my lower clan status to become a leader someday.

Apparently, the scroll I stole would assist my ascension. It was the only un-edited recount of what I presumed was the female leader. Not only did it recount techniques for chakra control but it detailed her origins as a second branch member―which obliterated Fugaku's ruling that leadership would only remain in the strongest main branch family, passing down to Itachi and then his children and so on.

The majority of the Uchiha turned a blind eye to Fugaku's cruelty that he exercised on the streets of Konohagakure. If any other clan or nameless civilian approached an Uchiha or didn't 'treat' the Uchiha with adequate respect, they'd be incarcerated outside the jurisdiction of the Hokage.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was aware of the worsening relationship between the Uchiha and the village―though, his only solution was to entrust Shisui, Itachi and me by swaying the Uchiha's opinions of others and attempt to rationalise with them.

The water began to ripple beneath my feet and I gasped. Inabi appeared out of nowhere and punched Shisui in the jaw. I quickly tossed the scroll to Itachi and we turned to run down the river.

"Etsuko Uchiha, you're under arrest by the orders of Lord Fugaku!" Tekka came from above and grabbed for the collar of my shirt again. This time, he swung me around and tossed me into the surrounding cavern.

Getting up immediately, I ducked under Tekka's arm and latched onto Shisui's hand. The brief connection made my cheeks flush red. Shisui's hand lowered to my forearm and pulled back to the water. Regardless of the pursuit, I couldn't help but admire him.

I envied the length of his lashes which were distorted under his unkempt dark curls. At the Academy, most of the girls considered him feminine aside from his broad nose. I never listened to them because I knew Shisui's strength, some part of me wanted him to become a leader.

His high-collared dark outfit didn't bare the Uchiha symbol, an act of resistance against Fugaku to signify not wanting to continue the feud. I admired Shisui for his rebellious attitude and always strengthening our cause so there were no doubts. I was surprised when we first began to break away from the clan―regarding his closeness to Itachi, I thought both boys would wain and begin to agree with Fugaku's ideology, but they never did.

I swallowed slowly when his Sharingan flicked up to meet my dark eyes. Even though Shisui was distracting me, we could communicate with gestures. With a simple blink of his eyes I knew I had to move. I used his back as a foothold as I pulled the Tanto from its sheath. I swung around and stuck the blade into Inabi's shoulder, quickly retracting it to wipe the blood off on my pants.

Inabi cried out as Tekka and Yashiro stopped to check on their comrade. Shisui and I paused as the current surged in the water. A trail of red caused our eyes to widen. Tekka slit Inabi's throat. . .to them, no link was better than a weak one.

_ Is this what our clan has come to? _ I thought.

Shisui tugged on my arm again, pulling me out of my delirium. I nodded at him as we continued to run across the water, joining Itachi on the other side of the river. His face remained impassive as he looked at the blood that ran through the water.

Shisui marked us again and we disappeared.

At the valley, our scent was masked by the spray of the mighty waterfall that roared between Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju's stone statues.

Fugaku's twelfth speech over the uprising had taken place a week ago and Itachi predicted that we had a month at the latest to stop the coup d'état from starting. Ever since last week, Itachi had distanced himself from us. Tonight was the first night we'd properly seen him.

Itachi's Sharingan was alert as he looked at me from beneath his pronounced eyelashes. His jet-black hair swayed in its low ponytail, the hair that framed his face blew around him despite the Konohagakure headband he wore. It looked like he was going to say something to me but decided against it.

I suppose he'd fallen back into the 'noble' household mentality, where he shouldn't tolerate those from the lesser branches, but Shisui smacked him upside the head. I couldn't stop the warmth in my cheeks at Shisui's smirk before he pats my back. Itachi knew I _liked_ Shisui, and usually criticised me about it.

"You're bleeding," my eyes flicked down to Itachi's shins where the bandages had discoloured to a muddy red.

"It's nothing," Itachi replied.

Shisui rubbed the back of his head and exhaled. Itachi and I didn't usually get into fights, but recently, since last week, we've done nothing but yell at each other. Shisui picked up the scroll from the bank of the lake and tossed it to me, giving me an excuse not to punch Itachi.

I opened the scroll and skim-read through it. It seemed to be an account of the female Uchiha's time as clan leader. She spoke of the tension that had dissipated since becoming clan leader and that some of the civilians were starting to accept the Uchiha once more―but it didn't give me the name of the woman. I growled and threw the scroll towards the bank of the lake.

"What's wrong?" Shisui frowned.

"It's not what I was looking for," I growled and threw my hands up in the air.

"It could be a dummy scroll like the other five which we almost died retrieving," Itachi folded his arms.

"No, this wasn't a fake, the woman referred to Hashirama and Madara personally," I bit at him. "I'm looking for her techniques on chakra control... .maybe then I'll match you both."

We'd had five other attempts to find answers to the Uchiha 'problem' but all had been decoys placed by Fugaku to stop the resistance from snooping around. We found two the night of Fugaku's proposal, but all said the same thing: 'Konohagakure will be stained red' with the majority of the woman's message smeared or scribbled out.

"Yeah well, the documents left by Hashirama Senju says that the unknown woman left right before the turning point between the Uchiha and Senju," Shisui tossed a pebble at the waterfall. "I mean, Kagami was her advisor, but even he wouldn't speak to me about it."

"I don't get why peace is such a taboo thing," I scowled. "Surely Fugaku would rather have more clan members _alive_ than lost as collateral damage if he starts a war."

"The stone tablet mentions that it will only be achieved through power," Itachi stretched his arms.

"Then what are we going to do, we can't just let your father ruin this village," Shisui narrowed his eyes at Itachi.

The two boys used to consider each other as brother's, but during the past week, that bond that had been in place since birth was practically broken in a matter of hours. I looked away from the two glaring boys and glanced up at the moon.

"We won't do anything, we'll simply observe the coup d'état," Itachi mused. "Besides, we all have to train for the squad trials to see whose worthy of their Uchiha rank."

The 'squad' trials were designed for the Uchiha clan and had been implemented through Hiruzen Sarutobi since all Uchiha, regardless of their social standing, excelled at their classes in the Academy. It was a test of endurance, stamina and strength where families went against each other in hope to elevate themselves through the Uchiha ranks―if your child failed, then you'd be demoted and drop lower from your current position within the clan, whereas if you win, you get higher status and possibly move to the first main household of the Uchiha.

"The squad trials are a waste of time Itachi, you've said it all along," Shisui pouted. "I can't believe Lord Third agreed with your father and gave the go-ahead on the project."

"I've had a change of heart," Itachi got up, trying to mask the pain of his ankle.

Itachi surely did have a change of heart, and it was going to rip our bonds apart.

* * *

I sat with Shisui on the front step of the main branch's home. Fugaku was inside shouting at Itachi about our renegade mission that morning. To Shisui's discontent, Itachi didn't bother to stick up for us; he simply listened to his father's patronising words and agreed with him. It got to the point where Shisui couldn't take it anymore and pulled me out of the Uchiha compound.

It was if someone had taken Itachi and replaced him with an emotionless monster. I sighed but didn't argue when Shisui guided me by the hand towards the Hokage Tower. Heat sparked in my cheeks as I blushed, quickly averting my eyes from Shisui.

"We need to speak to Lord Third about this," Shisui ignored the onlookers that muttered about the 'blasted Uchiha clan' and continued towards the Hokage Tower. "You can't tell anybody this Etsu–Chan, not even Itachi."

My eyes widened slightly at Shisui's sudden bout of affection towards me, my mother used to call me Etsu–Chan, but now my parents had banished me from their household because they thought they weren't good enough for me. So now, I resided in the apartment above Shisui, living by myself.

I nodded.

"Alright," Shisui swallowed and let go of my hand. "Lord Third has asked me to watch over Itachi. The three of us were originally going to be his infiltrators to the Uchiha and report to him about Fugaku's progress with the usurp of power―Lord Third knows that Itachi's sucking up to his father for information, but he's also doing it so we can't get discovered. Itachi is a brother to me, and he wants me to guard you like a little sister, but I'm afraid that Itachi's going to do something stupid."

"What do you mean?" I scowled.

"When the rounds start tomorrow between the lower branches of the Uchiha, Fugaku's going to recruit those that rise in rank," Shisui looked over his shoulder as if someone was watching us. "When Fugaku picks those select few, he'll gloat to Itachi, and then Itachi will relay the information to me that I'll pass onto the Hokage―but I think he'll lie, Itachi's become so unpredictable and I don't like it one bit."

"Then what are we going to do about it? There's no point confronting him since he'll try slit our throats," I clenched my fists.

"I know," Shisui poked my forehead. "You asked me how to acquire the Mangekyou Sharingan a while ago, remember?"

"Mmhmm," I nodded.

"In order to obtain those eyes, you have to kill someone you love... .be it a family member or best friend," Shisui's voice became uneven. "And I think that we will never be able to stop the man Itachi is becoming by simply talking to him about it, he needs to be terminated."


End file.
